Three Lawrence men were arrested Monday evening after leading police on a brief car chase.

According to Lawrence Police Sgt. Dave Hubbel, the incident began shortly after 9 p.m. Officers were leaving the scene of an earlier incident at Quik Trip, 1020 East 23rd St., when they observed a truck cutting through the parking lot of a nearby business.

The vehicle did not have a license plate and an officer began a routine traffic stop. Hubbel said when the officer turned on the squad car’s lights, the vehicle took off. The officer followed the vehicle, a four-wheel-drive truck, toward Massachusetts Street. Hubbel said the truck handled better on the roads and the officer was not able to continue the pursuit.

The suspect vehicle was spotted a few minutes later headed northbound on Tennessee Street. Officers finally located the vehicle in the 2000 block of Ohio Street.

The driver, a 36-year-old Lawrence man, was arrested for driving with suspended or fictitious tags, reckless driving, attempting to elude and driving while suspended. Hubbel said the vehicle’s other passengers, 25 and 35-year-old Lawrence residents, were arrested on charges of forgery stemming from a crime reported earlier in the day.

It was also determined the vehicle did not belong to any of the three people arrested.